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- Not a substitute for professional veterinary help.
Your little furball is depending on you for stimulating toys, clean litter, plenty of fresh water, and the right nutrition. This is your opportunity to get your new kitten off to a healthy start—and minimize vet visits later on. With hundreds of choices out there, where’s a person to start? We can help with some tips about the best dry food for kittens.
Hill's Science Diet Indoor Kitten Dry Food
Hill’s Science Diet foods are developed with a science-based approach to feline nutrition. The company employs veterinarians, nutritionists, and food scientists to formulate healthy diets.rnrnCat parents give rave reviews to this tasty kitten kibble with healthy ingredients including chicken, brown rice, and fish oil. The fish oil supports brain and eye development, while balanced minerals build strong bones and teeth.rn
A Few Notes on Kitten Nutrition
Cats have special nutritional needs that can’t be met by human food or food intended for other pets. For one thing, cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they must have the amino acids found in meat to survive. A cat’s diet must be high in proteins from meat, and a kitten’s diet (from birth to one year) must be even higher in protein to support their rapid growth.
Kittens can be introduced to a specially formulated kitten food when they are as young as three weeks old. Once your kitten is weaned (at about eight to ten weeks), you can begin feeding them kitten food exclusively. Many veterinarians recommend offering new kittens a mix of foods with different textures, including different recipes of dry and canned food, in an effort to broaden their palates and keep them from getting picky.
Dry food is convenient for everyone because you don’t have to worry about food going bad in the bowl when you’re out for the day.
But Dr. Gary Richter, author of “The Ultimate Pet Health Guide,” strongly recommends making wet food a significant part of your kitten’s diet to make sure they are getting plenty of water. “Canned diets or fresh, whole food diets have a much higher moisture content than dry kibble,” he says.
So go ahead and put some canned kitten food on top of the kibble to stimulate appetite and provide variety.
The Best Dry Food for Kittens
When you’re choosing kibble for your kitten, check the label to make sure it’s formulated for kittens. Look for wording that indicates the food meets the nutritional levels established by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) Profiles “for growth” or “for all life stages.” AAFCO members regulate pet food at the federal and state level.
Keep in mind that while giant bags of food may be a bargain, dry kitten food should be consumed within two months of opening the package. Store your kitten’s dry food in a cool, dry location away from sunlight to prevent spoiling. Keep the original bag (which is designed to keep food fresh) or container tightly closed.
Our list below includes popular, high-quality dry foods from basic and premium brands, so there’s something to fit every kitten parent’s budget. And all of these kitten foods have received rave reviews from buyers.
Hill’s Science Diet Indoor Kitten Dry Food
Hill’s Science Diet foods are developed with a science-based approach to feline nutrition. The company employs veterinarians, nutritionists, and food scientists to formulate foods that are both healthy and delicious. This kitten-specific recipe leads with chicken and includes brown rice and fish oil. It’s designed for kittens up to one year of age, as well as for cats who are pregnant or nursing.
Hill's Science Diet Indoor Kitty Dry Food
Cat parents give rave reviews to this tasty kitten kibble with healthy ingredients including chicken, brown rice, and fish oil. The fish oil supports healthy brain and eye development and balanced minerals aid in the development of strong bones and teeth.
Wellness Core Kitten Formula Dry Food
Wellness takes a holistic approach to feeding time, crafting its foods with a focus natural ingredients and no fillers. Turkey and chicken are the first ingredients in this tasty kibble for kittens. The recipe includes DHA omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil to promote brain development.
Wellness Core Kitten Formula Dry Food
Your kitten will enjoy chicken and turkey—along with vitamins and minerals—in this grain-free kibble. To keep the flavors (and nutritional benefits) exciting, this formula also features dried kelp and cranberries, providing additional fiber and antioxidants to your growing baby.
Blue Buffalo Wilderness Kitten Dry Food
Named after a beloved family dog, Blue, this company aims to feed pets as well as we feed ourselves. Its foods contain only real meats as their first ingredients and use no poultry by-product meals, fillers like corn/wheat/soy, or artificial flavors or preservatives.
Blue Buffalo Wilderness Kitten Dry Food
If your kitten bounces around like a tiny wildcat, Blue Buffalo’s Wilderness kitten food is the perfect choice to support that level of activity. It’s a high-protein food designed for growing kittens that includes yummy chicken for flavor, boosted with fish oil, blueberries, potatoes, and cranberries.
Halo Holistic Wild Salmon and Whitefish Recipe Kitten Dry Food
What sets Halo apart from many other pet food makers is the fact that it takes care to search out ingredients from sustainable sources. All meats are sourced from Canada, the U.S., and New Zealand and come only from animals raised without hormones or genetically modified feed diets. In addition, Halo chooses only non-GMO fruits and vegetables.
Halo Holistic Wild Salmon and Whitefish Recipe Kitten Dry Food
Here’s a kitten food made primarily from sustainably caught fish (including whole salmon and whitefish). It includes DHA and all the vitamins and minerals necessary for healthy growth. Your little furball will no doubt enjoy the fish flavor, as well as all the tasty benefits from other wholesome ingredients such as peas, blueberries, and carrots.
Purina One Healthy Kitten Formula Dry Food
This affordable dry food leads with Purina’s promise that there is nutritional purpose behind every ingredient in its formula. These include vitamins, minerals, and DHA, a nutrient found in kitten mothers’ milk that assists with brain and vision development.
Purina One Healthy Kitten Formula Dry Food
Thanks to its affordability, this healthy option is great for humans who are feeding more than one kitten. The whole litter will benefit from chicken as a first ingredient as well as other healthy additions, including L-Lysine, fish oil, carrots, and peas.
Nulo Freestyle Chicken and Cod Dry Food
Created by a former biomedical engineer, Nulo foods are formulated specifically to combat the epidemics of obesity and diabetes in America’s pets. Focusing on quality ingredients and whole meats with few fillers, Nulo foods are free of dangerous empty calories.
Nulo Freestyle Chicken and Cod Recipe for Cats and Kittens
Poultry and fish combine to provide the animal-based protein kittens need to grow lean muscle without the excessive calories that come with carbohydrate-heavy fillers. This formula is 83% protein—great for kittens and their rapid growth spurts, not to mention setting your little one up for success in the future.
Royal Canin Dry Kitten Food
Royal Canin has been in the game of developing science-based nutrition for pets since 1968. In that time it has become trusted for its variety of foods tailored to very specific pet needs—from breed and age-specific formulas to veterinary diets.
Royal Canin Dry Kitten Food
Developed for kittens between the ages of four months and one year, this recipe from Royal Canin delivers all of the antioxidants, vitamins, and protein that your little one needs to thrive. The small, easy-to-chew kibble makes easy work of transitioning your kitten to dry food.
Iams Proactive Health
Iams has been in the pet food game since 1946, and its founder was one of the first to consider the fact that pets need specifically formulated, premium foods. As such, it’s one of the giants in the industry—which means its foods are both affordable and easy to find.
Iams Proactive Health Kitten Food
This protein-rich diet includes all kinds of good stuff to keep kitten bellies happy, including all-important prebiotics and fiber for a healthy biome. Designed for kittens up to one year of age, it also features Vitamin E for immune system support and essential nutrients for healthy heart development.
Purina Pro Plan Kitten Food
Another giant in the pet food industry, Purina’s Pro Plan formulas rely on science-based nutritional advancement to craft specific pet food formulas. Pro Plan foods feature real meat as the first ingredient and focus on optimal protein-to-fat ratios.
Purina Pro Plan Kitten Food
Kittens love the tasty chicken in Purina’s Pro Plan recipe designed for cats under one year of age. With 42% protein and DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid that aids brain and vision development, this food will not only taste good but actually be good for your growing kitten.
Purina Kitten Chow Nurture Dry Food
Healthy and affordable, this dry food is a kitten-specific recipe high in protein and fortified with minerals and vitamins. Because it’s made by Purina, it’s easy to find and a great option for those providing for large litters of kittens.
Purina Kitten Chow Nurture Dry Food
This high-protein chow is a healthy, easy-to-serve food for growing kittens. It contains DHA for brain and muscle development as well as essential nutrients found in a kitty mom’s milk.
